RPlog:Political Repercussions
NRCV Audacity -- Ready Room This part of the Audacity has been designed as a situation room for high-ranking officers to discuss unfolding events in privacy. A large table is the focal point of the space, surrounded by ten high-backed, synthleather seats. Mounted into the tabletop, fold-up computer monitors allow for subspace conferencing from ship to ship, and even system to system. A holoprojector is also featured in the table's center. Most of the colors in the room are a light, creamy shade of off-white, with much of the furniture being similar. A screen at the forward end of the room can display combat information piped in from the bridge, as well as visuals from holorecorders on the exterior of the ship. The room's setup is rounded out by the New Republic Crest displayed prominently in red on the port wall, and the ship's DEDICATION plaque near the room's entrance. ---- For reasons that merit little attention, Rasi finds himself the one holding this meeting today. No doubt because the Audacity's CO had to be transported to the medbay after some unforeseen accident and surprisingly, none of the COs assigned to this task group were available then. As such, he is the one who walks into the ready room wearing the unnecessarily-formal, usually anyway, dress uniform of the Republic's navy down to the garrison cap. Though he has every intention to fasten that to his epaulets as soon as enough people get here. A nice contrast to the mahogany tone of his skin, the white dress uniform, jacket undershirt and pants, is complimented by the various hardware expected and the polished black boots. When the Senator is seen, he walks towards the man, snapping to attention and offering him a quick nod. "Senator." ------ This wasn't the first military vessel that the Senator had been on board; he had seen his share both during his history as an officer and his history in diplomacy and politics. Some had been for pleasure; most had been for business. This particular visit is obviously one of business: a business that he isn't finding pleasurable in any way whatsoever. At the moment, he has been pacing up and down the Audacity's Ready Room for quite some time now, and despite his normal patience with just about any matter, his patience is starting to grow thin. The Mon Calamari's face is as distorted in anger as a Mon Calamari's face can be; he is silently mumbling something to himself, although that something isn't immediately obvious and would require quite a bit of amplification to be able to understand. Anyone who knows the Senator well would recognize that this kind of behavior is extremely out of character for him; even someone who recognizes his personality from broadcasts would be able to tell that this is extremely out of character behavior for him. As another officer enters the ready room--one of a stream of several who have been asuring him that the rest of the parties scheduled to be here will be here shortly--Lemos quickly adopts different, somewhat more personable stance and outlook, although his displeasure is only thinly veiled now rather than completely obvious. "Ah...Good afternoon..." ------ Chaboub, a leader among the Quarren of Reef Home City, has been lurking in the corridor outside the ready room, waiting for the respresentatives from the New Republic to arrive. He knows better than to be alone in the ready room with the angry Mon Calamari senator, especially given the mood he's feeling himself. He follows directly after Rasi, making no attempt to hide the scowl on his face. "You have some weak excuse, I think, to explain your military?" he asks Rasi directly, and without preamble. ------ "If you would sit down, please.", he says to the Quarren, pointing to the chair at the right hand of the one at the head of the table. "Senator, if you would please.", the chair opposite the Quarren's. That way if the two of them go at it, he can at least step in and the chances of the Quarren saying he was insulted by being less honoured than the Senator are lessened. "I believe that there are concerns regarding the recent excursion by the Marines, if you would please state your positions we can address your concerns." ------ Lemos takes cursory glance at the Quarren; he hasn't had the opportunity to meet with Chaboub directly, since he has nearly just arrived on the planet himself; making a mental note to be sure to try to schedule a meeting with him after this, he takes the nearest seat that offers itself to him. He hasn't brought anything with him other than his personal datapad, which is currently resting on the table itself, containing a few open documents detailing the recent press that both his own address and the releases that prompted his address, but he doesn't seem very interested in them at the moment. "You already know my positions on your 'excursion', Lieutenant Commander." Lemos coats the word 'excursion' with sarcasm. "I'm sure calling it that helps ease your conscience, but the people who actually *live* on the planet that you've just invaded have a number of 'concerns' with your 'excusrion'; a great many are just angry. Others want to know ..." Lemos picks up his datapad. "When you're leaving now that you've proved that you can wipe the planet off the galactic map...what you're doing here in the first place completely uninvited by the planetary administration and the Senate delegation of the planet...I have hundreds of pieces of correspondence here from residents, and the general consensus, Lieutenant Commander, is that your presence is unwanted on both sides of this conflict." ------ Chaboub does not take a seat immediately. He paces back and forth a few times, looking between the Mon Cal and the naval man baelfully, before he finally deigns to perch himself on the offered chair. As strange as he finds it to agree with the man sitting across from him, he just summed up his own position quite succenctly. "Your men attacked my people," he shoots towards Rasi viciously. "Sick people going to a medical facility for help. Attacked them, and /mutilated/ them." There had been at least one quarren they had found who had had the back of the skull removed, and a sample of brain taken. Disgusting. "How do you explain these actions?" ------ "Mr...", that he is looking at the Quarren. The CO's recent injury having quite literally made him a last minute replacement, Rasi has received only the quickest of briefings before being thrown into the cage with the lions. "We have not invaded anything, Senator. This bacta facility was one, as I am led to understand, that was critical for the well-being of many other beings. The insurgents and terrorists had taken it over and were refusing to provide its services to the general citizenry of the planet. Would you say, Sirs, that this was not a laudable goal? The liberation of a large refinery so that its products could be offered to the many instead of many people being at risk while insurgents hoarded precious bacta?" And he looks back at the Quarren then, does Rasi, a slight frown altering to a great degree what was a neutral face. "Sir, the New Republic's rules of engagement clearly forbid unwarranted use of force and demands utmost respect for prisonners and captured enemies as well as the wounbded and dead. I am hope you are not suggesting that the Republic has stooped so low as to be compared to the atrocities of the ISB, their Stormtroopers and their ilk?" ------ Lemos can't help but thinking that this is going spectacularly well for everyone with the exception of the military; maybe this could all be finished by joining together and being mad with what has happened with the military. That was quite unlikely, however...it would take a lot more than a mutual enemy to end this. At least it might be a start. The Senator hadn't heard any of the details on what exactly had happened to the Quarren that had been injured and killed; he just had the numerical data. Sighing a little, he tries to put aside any thoughts of guilt for having miserably failed the people he was elected to represent. "No, I would *not* say that is a laudable goal. Had you actually bothered to think before applying lethal force, you would have realized that the planetary economy had already ground to a screeching halt. Did it ever occur to you that maybe they were hoarding bacta because they needed it to treat those injured by the plague? And you can't argue that it's absence was denying medical facilities their own supplies; the relief efforts have proven surprisingly adequate--something else you may have realized had you used intelligence." "I won't compare the Republic to the ISB publicly, but this is exactly what I would expect them to do in this situation, and some of the things that have been done sound surprisingly ... Imperialesque. Especially so lacking the approval of the planetary government." ------ "We have documentation of the mutilation," the angry Quarren representative spits out furiously. Opening a folder, he tosses negligently out on the table some holos printed on flimsiplast, portraying in graphic detail the mutilation that had been done to the back of one individual's skull. "Not only were your men attacking civilians, but they stopped and took the time to disfigure dead. Or, we can only hope he was dead at the time of this mutilation. The autopsy has not yet reached a conclusive result." ------ And it is the Senator's turn to get a look, though this one is more surprised and a wee bit disappointed. He had expected the Senator's reputation as pro-military to pull through in this case. "Senator, if I may offer my personal views on this. That is not what the ISB or the Imperial Military would have done. A large task force would be gathered immediately. Complimenting that would be a few Corps of the Imperial Army, and a legion or two of the Stormtrooper Corps." Oh, he is well used to what Imperials do to planets of the size and importance of Mon Calamari are on the verge of rebelling or are otherwise under threat of civil war. The normal way he says this without a gulp or anything of the sort would indicate that he's picked up that blase way of looking at violence that many soldiers have acquired for most things. "Needless to say, the seas of your planets would be running red with the blood of the dead. And to my knowledge there are several insurgent groups, intelligence reports that there is already...friction between some of them. Just because one of them holds a facility does not mean that all will get the benefits of that facility. Senator, you will agree with me that the Military is far more impartial and generous in its distribution of bacta than terrorists, yes?" Then comes time to acknowledge the Quarren, hoping that earlier grimace went unnoticed. "First of all, who am I addressing exactly, Sir? Secondly, you exaggerate highly. As you have these photographs, you are aware that this was done to obtain a medical sample? Not, as you say, an example of Marines gone mad and rampaging through the streets." ------ Lemos watches with no small amount of interest; making this public would probably go a long way. Turning his eyes away fromthe images a little, the Mon Calamari picks up one of the holofilms and images it with his datapads, saving the file somewhere for later use in case he needs more dirt on something they've done. After dropping the image back to the table, he looks up at the naval officer. "And how many people have to die before it goes from 'acceptable, insignificant casualties' to 'running red with the blood of the dead'? Every one of these people is an important part of the planet, Lieutenant Commander, and yet you have the audacity to attack them with lethal force. You could have used less-than-lethal weapons. You could have used gas; you could haved used tranquilizers; you could have used non-lethal blasters. Instead you went full-force. As for *this," The senator twists the picture around with a finger. "I'm guessing from the blaster burns that this Quarren wasn't already killed by the plague. I'm willing to bet that the cause of death wasn't that; and -that- is chief among the things that bother me. Insurgent status aside, you might just as well waltz into one of the medical facilities and end lives prematurely for samples when there are plenty to be had in morgues where those inside have died of natural causes." Flicking the picture across the table where it had been before, he takes a long breath before starting again. "'Friction' is to be expected. 'Friction' requires a planetary defence and police force. 'Friction' does not require a battalion of marines armed to teeth. The only thing you've done to the 'friction' is made it infinitely worse!" ------ Once again, the quarren finds himself agreeing whole-heartedly with his Mon Calamari counterpart, and the near-hostility he had displayed towards the man is not fully directed towards the hapless Naval officer, Rasi Cen. "I could not agree more," he concurs with Lemos' words. "This," he taps one of the holos with a suction-cupped finger, "Is a disgrace. It defiles this man, without his permission. It is not acceptable. None of these deaths were acceptable. Hard enough to prevent excesive violence against the Mon Calimari. Now I must prevent violence against the New Republic as well?" ------ There's a knock at the door, and a Marine honor guard pokes his head in the archway. "Captain Draelis is here, sirs," he says, before stepping back. Outside the doors, the two Marines lock eyes and exchange short nods- the guard deferring to the stout Marine coming in. Vengan enters the doorway looking a fright. It's clear he'd just come out of the combat zone without getting cleaned or even bothering to wash himself off. A dark beard lines his chin, and one side of his face is covered in a bacta burn gelatin. Dirt and what might be gore covers his chest and one arm, and it's fairly obvious that he's been hit during the last day of combat- more than once. "I was informed to report here to respond to your questions," he says with a gravelly, hoarse voice. His eyes flicker from Lemos to Rasi. "I've got men on the ground, gentlemen, and some of them in worse shape than I am. So let's get the questions out of the way as quickly as we can so I can get back to work." He folds his arms over the rifle on his chest. There's a sporadic twitch that occasionally marks his left hand, and were it not for wide dilation of his pupils, one would see in the Marine a man clearly fighting the battle of exhaustion. ------ Knowing what his commanding officer was requested to the Audacity for and knowing the man's current state, SSgt Tak Dagon arrives with Vengan looking very much in the same shape. Luckily in the insertion, he didn't suffer any severe wounds, so if anything he looks better in that regard. He stands off to the side of Vengan and allows the other man to talk. ------ "Sit down, if you please, Captain. Your presence here is required for some time and you look like you need rest.", that and it might settle down the two aliens in the room before ideas begin to be formed. "Sir, if we had brought the Audacity into this. There would remain nothing at all of the terrorists, the refinery and anything for many blocks around the liberated area." Normally, Rasi would use 'combat zone', but that would just risk inciting the Quarren and the Senator, something he has been expressly told not to do. "Mistakes may have occured in the exact handling of the post-engagement situation. However, Senator, Sir, as I am informed the refinery is already up to full strength and its products will be made available to all those who need them. The size of the area involved required our immediate attention, it was simply of too much importance. However, if you can guarantee that the police will cooperate with us we would be willing to let them take point and operate by their standards. Can you offer us that guarantee, Senator, Sir? And I assure you, the sample is being put to good use, full apologies will be sent to the individual's family and reparations if called for. But for this individual alone, the others were terrorists who were threatening your own people's lives should they have continued to hoard as they were. You must agree with me in this, yes?" ------ Looking far less worse for wear than that of her commanding counterpart, Galatea is the last in the trio of marines that enters the briefing room. She is outfitted in her full combat-medic gear and is covered in a fine film of grit and perspiration that gives skin a slight ghoulish tinge. Her hair, freed from her helm that rests between her left wrist and thigh is tightly knotted and plastered against her head and neck - in severe need of a wash. Weapons holstered, her foot falls are soft and controlled. Regardless of the previous expenditure of energy, it almost seems like Galatea feeds tension. Her eyes, alert and focused, seem to grow brighter with every step deeper into the bowels of the ready room and her stance seems comfortably poised. For now, she takes a position near Dagon. Her attention flits back and forth among the participants. ------ "Don't call it a 'liberated area'. It was never stolen. Lieutenant, his isn't a directed violence. This isn't an issue you can point a gun at, shoot up a few people, and end it. People are desperate, Lieutenant Commander. People will be just as desperate whether you attack them or not; the only thing you're doing with actions like this are impeding the peace process." The Senator seems to growl a little under his breath before speaking again. "I could have offered you the guarantee had you asked for it at the proper time before you went in, guns plazing. But now, you've already ruined any kind of relationship that you could have with the local forces. Quite a few of them have expressed concerns wondering what they should do if they're *fired upon*. Yes, you heard me right. You have the people who pay your salaries and pay for your equipment wondering what they're supposed to do if you *shoot them*. That is not a sign of stability." As Vengan enters the room, Lemos looks at him, recognizing him after a few moments. "Ahh...Lieutenant Vengan. I have one question, and one question only. Why did you use lethal force in your operation?" The fact that him and his companion have obviously just come back from an operation of some sort doesn't seem to bother him in the least. ------ "You will find few quarren willing to co-exist peacefully with your marines, Lt. Commander," Chaboub informs Rasi, before directing an unfriendly sneer towards the Draelis and his comrades as they enter. "Already there is talk of repelling this 'invasion.' It is difficult to curb the... enthusiasm of some of my people. ------ Draelis gives Lemos a look that quite clearly indicates the veteran Marine is biting back his first few replies to that question. "Because I'm not writing any more letters for dead Marines than I have to," Vengan finally answers, exhaustion forcing blunt honesty. "Stun weapons are unreliable, inaccurate, and can take as long as two to three seconds to disable a target. Against some species, they can be almost completely ineffective." He blinks, tiredly. "Moreover, I'm not in the habit of answering the threat of violence with non-aggressive measures. The insurgents had captured a bacta processing facility and were holding it hostage- and by doing so, they were putting the lives of thousands at risk. I gave the order to go in hot assuming that any insurgent we didn't kill would be a security threat and could potentially compromise our assault." He looks at Lemos. "Does that answer your question?" ------ "Yes, people are desperate. People are dying, and people are starving as food supplies get disturbed and people are dying from wounds when bacta is not available. I find it hard to believe that you would side with these terrorists when they're hurting their own people, when they're hurting your people." The full effect of that little holier-than-thou speech is lost when Rasi decides to deliver it in a dispassionate manner devoid of emphasis and all those other things orators are known for. "Were mistakes committed, naturally, and you will not find anyone here who disagrees with you. But they were committed in the implementation of the mission, not the actual mission itself. However, Mr. Representative, I will ask that you cease your talk of mutilation. You are out of line and likening us to the Empire, and that is neither accepted nor appreciated. We will, however, apologize for the incident involving the medical sample as well as our failure to clear it with local forces. The use of lethal force, while regretable was called for given that these were heavily-armed insurgents holding captive a facility that was needed for the public good." ------ Galatea's cloudy eyes observe the seated individuals passively with half lilting lids that obscure her pupils. Reinforcing her presence by choosing to not display emotion or insight into what her thoughts on the matter are, her breath draws in and out in a rhythmic flow. Eventually, she rolls her shoulders before letting them slump softly and settles her deportment for the long haul. If there was one absolute in the universe, it was that politics were hardly knife-edge concise. Idly, she mulls over the details of the insurgency in the backburner of her mind. Although not particularily perceptive, major disruptions in the normal flow of the day etched themselves into her mind rather readily. ------ The Senator doesn't look particularly satisfied with Vengan's answer, but it obviously makes at least a small bit of sense to him. Not immediately responding to that, he instead answers Rasi first. "... I side with all the residents of Dac; I'm not so narrow-minded that I'm only capable of seeing the validity of only a single viewpoint. Where you see lines, Lieutenant, I do not. I see one planet undergoing a very tumultous struggle due to an extremely unfortunate series of accidents." "Does someone need to be there to ensure violence doesn't get out of control? Yes. But for those same people who are supposed to protect the already-weakened peace to cripple it even more is a move that won't soon be forgiven by the planet. You're treating this as a warzone when it isn't. People are dying, yes. People are killing other people, yes. But the root of that issue isn't some ideological debate that you can throw grenades at and destroy. The root of the issue is a series of unfortunate mistakes. All you're doing, apart from securing a line of bacta which has already been rendered unncessary thanks to relief efforts which anticipated such a shortage, is forcing that violence to be the cause of further violence rather than just a side effect of the main issue at hand. However you look at it, Lieutenant, you are *not helping this planet*." ------ A gun clatters on the table. Vengan stares at Lemos, unblinkingly, his sidearm slowing to a spinning halt in front of the Senator. "With all due respect, Senator, you can either pick up that weapon or you can take your words and shove them," Vengan rasps. "Three Marines died last night. Marines who laid down their lives so that you and yours can sleep well in your beds at night. You want to know their names?" he says, voice rising, as he steps towards Lemos. "Corporal Puyleart. Private Deiana. Sergeant Hoxley." He stares daggers at the three men. "You think you want the truth? Well you -can't handle the truth!" "We've got greater responsibility here than you can possible fathom. Our existence in war, while grotesque and incomprehensible, saves lives. We Marines are in the business of saving lives." He flashes that hard gaze around. "You don't want to know the truth. You want us manning those walls. You -need- us on those walls!" he decalres. "And I have neither the time nor the inclination to to explain myself or the -blood of my men!-" he roars, "to men who rise and sleep under the blanket of the very freedom Marines have died to provide, and then question the manner in which we provide it!" He glares around. "So give the truth, which you reject, I'd rather you just said 'thank you' and went on your way! Otherwise, I suggest you pick up that weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a -damn- what kind of help you think you're entitled to!" ------ "This is my planet, 'sir,'" the quarren shoots angrily towards Rasi as he pushes himself up to his feet. He glares angrily around the table at the military men, his wrath seeming to skip the Mon Calamari, before it returns to Rasi again. "You will not give me orders here. These talks are accomplishing nothing." That said, he looks towards Lemos, considering the man and seeming to weigh him with his eyes for several moments. "We will talk," he promises Lemos politely, offering the man the slightest of bows before he turns to storm from the room. ------ Galatea meets the Captain's outburst with unflinching stoicism that prevents her body from reacting in kind. Her only physically manifested response is to knit her fingers together, letting them rest up against her lower abdomen. The light engagement helmet now rests in the crick of her left elbow, cradled securely. As the Quarren leaves, Galatea's eyes trace his progress until he disappears from her line of sight. Passions always seemed to mar judgement. For now, she continues to watch. ------ "That will be enough out of you!", Rasi says in the first show of emotion from his part, the heat in his voice quite apparent now. "You -will- show proper respect and deference to a member of the New Republic Senate. And I will never hear that kind of talk out of you when you're addressing a member of the Republic's government, and for the purposes of this meeting, a man that can be considered your superior. I may tolerate your talk when it's for my part but I will hear no more of it to a Senator." Civilians losing their tempers, that he can live with, but soldiers such as he should know better, they should have control of their temper better. Was he the only one who paid attention in discipline classes? He's certainly starting to think so. "We will talk again, Mr. Representative, but you will have your apology and we will make certain that you are consulted amply should the need for another mission present itself." For some reason, Rasi begins to doubt that the CO really had an injury, certainly he will check the doctor's report to see if there's not some prank being pulled on him. "As I was saying, Senator. Despite mistakes committed here in this mission, the facility has been placed under your government's control. And there is another reason why we have asked you here as well, I have received news from my superiors as well as the civilian government concerning your role in this." ------ Lemos seems to completely ignore Rasi, watching Vengan's sidearm spin to a hlat. The Senator's hand stops the gun from spinning just as it starts to be distinguishable from a black circle then knocks it clear across the table. "I *do* want the truth! I want to know why *this* had to happen!" Lemos flings one of the numerous images left by the Quarren representative. "I want to know why I have to answer letters about what to do if you shoot at our police force when they try to keep you from murdering civilians. I want to know why I have to answer questions at press conferences about how the government's inability to control it's military! I want to know WHY!" Completely out of breath at this point, the Senator is standing, leaning on the table and nearly panting, at which he calms down slightly. "This is *not* what the Republic is about. The Republic is about cooperation and joining together in times of crisis. it is about keeping people safe by acting as a collective. You're breaking that collective apart, and unless something is done about it, and something is done about it *soon*, it is only going to get worse." ------ Draelis turns on Rasi and the look in his eyes is positively murderous. He takes a slow step towards the Naval officer, extending a finger like a dagger. "I told you before, Cen. You want to give me or mine orders, you pick up a weapon and toe the line like a soldier should. Otherwise, stay the hell out of my affairs." Vengan turns back to Lemos. "I'll tell you what you tell them, Senator," Vengan says through gritted teeth. "You tell them you trust your Marines. You tell them that these are the warriors who fought the Empire from Hoth to Coruscant. You tell them that these Marines are the one who've fought and died in every major engagement we've been in for the last decade. You can tell them, Senator," he says, voice rising to a furious crescendo, "that these are the ones who have added their blood to the brick and mortar the Republic is made of, and that you trust -us- to uphold the values we have died for- especially if that means dealing with those individuals who feel that violent terrorism is the only recourse!" "You want to bring me up on charges? Do it. You want to toss the entire Corps in the brig? Do that, too. Hell, if you want to get us off this planet and let it destabilize into howling civil war, you get the Chief of State to sign the order." He sets his jaw. "But until you either accept our decisions as the best ones we can make or you pry my rifle from my cold, dead fingers, I will continue to serve this great society as best I can- and if that requires my life, or death, then it is a price I -willingly- pay!" ------ The noise of voices have attracted attention. Ghost Leader, fresh in from patrol with her pilots, report in hand, steps into the ready room, having been told Cen or Starwind or someone with bigger braid than she has is in there. And what she finds is enough to make the Chyleni woman arch one silver brow, her tail flickering back and forth patiently. The dull glassy sort of stare she's been giving everyone since before the incident involving the deserted ship is still somewhat there, Kyrin looking between angry Marine and angry Senator. "What has happened?" she asks calmly, her wings flicking up briefly at the heated words that she overheard from the bridge and prompted her entry. And then when she catches the tail end of what Vengan has to say, she merely turns to Rasi as the senior officer in command and says dully, "Lt. Colonel Sh'vani, reporting as ordered." As if he hadn't said a word. ------ Involuntarily, Galatea's teeth set and subtlely grind as she absorbs the impact of the Captain's impassioned speech. Such selflessness, if it was in fact genuine, flew in the face of everything she had been subjected to as an Imperial. Elation threatened to well up from the bottom of her chest where her heartbeat palpitated at an accelerated pace, flushing her face with newly circulated blood. It takes a deep breath and a concerted, concious effort to regain her rigid self-composure. ------ At this point in time, Lemos' eyes contain none of the kindness that they're usually filled with. Instead, they're filled with something roughly halfway in between anger and pure contempt. "I'm sorry for your men, Captain, I really am. I'm sorry to have to sully their memory with something like this, but there is a great deal more at stake here than the lives of three men. I would like nothing more than to tell them that, Captain. I would love to stand before the Council of Dac and say 'I trust the Marines with the life of every individual Quarren and Mon Calamari on this planet'. I would love to say 'There's nothing you have to worry about from the Republic military.' I would love to say 'You're safe now; go home and sleep.' "But as much as I would like to, I can't. I can't say 'Go home and sleep' and have full belief in what I'm saying. And even if I did, it would be just my luck that some Quarren child would come up and tell me how his father was one of your 'terrorists', and how his mother had the plauge but couldn't get any treatment because none of the area medical centers would treat a Quarren, so he had no other option. Already at a loss for words, I would have to wait for him to finish as he asked me why his father was not only *brutally killed*, but *had part of his brain removed!* What would I say then? 'Oh, don't worry, they're really here to protect you'? I think not!" ------ Oh, that's the drop that broke the vase, as the saying goes, or something of the sort. "Captain Vengan Draelis, you will report to the 224th Batallion's commander immediately after this meeting is over. And he will take any disciplinary measures are required for clear breaches of protocol, etiquette, and outright insulting a member of the New Republic Senate." There are a few other choice things he would recommend, but this is not the focus of the meeting, "Now, sit down.", disregard this part if he is actually sitting down, "Stop talking in that manner, and regain control over yourself, Captain. Yelling at an extremely high-ranked member of the government is not behaviour the military, -all- of the military, tolerates." Unlike others, Rasi doesn't get loud or agitated when he's angry, which this most certainly would qualify as, the opposite instead occurs. The man becomes utterly calm, externally anyway, with his voice gaining a noticeable cold undertone to it. "As I was saying Senator, you are right. This is a peacekeeping mission and except under certain circumstances when aid is critically needed and directly requested from local forces and the Mon Calamari government, I believe that the military should restrain itself from offensive peacemaking." Or combat as some might call it, but offensive peacemaking sounds better. "You have been requested to act as the coordinator for the various Republican assests tasked to this mission. The scientists, the medical and humanitarian aid workers, as well as the military. This applies as well for the Naval, Army and Starfighter units assigned to this relief mission. Of course, during actual combat you will serve only as an advisor and tactical decision-making will remain with the various officers engaged." The Chyleni's arrival is noticed and he quickly rises offering a brief salute to the woman before sitting back down. "Please join us Colonel and take a seat if you would.", er, if the wings permit, "I believe that we will need your expertise and wisdom in this matter. This is Senator Ackinbrac of Mon Calamari if you do not know him." "As I was saying, Senator. You are effectively in charge of telling us, those members of the military assigned to this relief mission, what to do and where we are best needed." At least then does Rasi calm down a little and take a deep breath, he leans back in his chair and waits for the MonCal's reaction, hopefully that should calm the man down enough. ------ "My Marines were informed to gather a viable brain-tissue specimen in order to assess the possiblity of disease or cross-contamination," Vengan returns after taking a steadying breath. "At the time I did not question that order. I leave medical analysis to far more competent individuals. If those orders were recieved incorrectly, then it is -my- fault for not making sure that the orders were understood and processed correctly- as commander of those Marines." He straightens. "So to that young man, I can only offer my most sincere apologies as a soldier who would never want to see one of his own suffer furthur after death. For that, I have no justification. For the actions on the facility, I can only tell you that I understood my mission was to secure the bacta facility from armed and hostile insurgents. If that was wrong, then I- and I, alone- take full responsibility for that decision and the consequences after it." Draelis looks Rasi in the eye, and there's a moment where he's clearly considering throwing something heavy at the Naval officer. "Aye Aye. Commander," Vengan says, and there's ice in his voice. He turns back to Lemos. Vengan looks back to Lemos, and a measure of regret comes to his face. "Senator, I'm here to save lives. You want the Marines gone? We'll take our dead and go. You want us to turn in our weapons?" He glances at the sidearm in the corner. "Hell, I'll give you my commission right here if you think that I'm not acting in the Republic's best interests." To prove his point, he tears off the rank on his body armor and holds it out to Lemos. "It's yours if you want it, Senator," he murmurs. "I'm just here to serve- and if leaving will do that, then so be it." ------ The Senator sits back down and catches a few breaths; partially because he's an old man and can't stand with his stress level that high for that long, but mostly because Vengan seems to have backed down on the hostility for the moment. Resting his head on his hands, he stays silent for a few moments before speaking further. "I have no problems with the Captain's cander, Lieutenant. In fact, I prefer it to the dry monotony that I often encounter." Looking back at Vengan, he seems to chew over his words for another few seconds before taking Vengan's rank and twirling it between his fingers a few times, then setting it down on the table. "I don't want your commission, Captain. For one thing, I've already been through one. For another thing, I think I'm more useful where I am. That aside...I don't want you to pay for your mistakes, but I do want you to be accountable for them. A televised apology and proof of starting reparations would be an excellent start. You never know when you'll run into that young man." ------ Kyrin blinks almost placidly as the anger swirls around them and then starts to fade away. The offer of a commission returned causes her to shake her head slightly, and the insult to Cen is enough to get her to speak. "As we too are guests aboard the Audacity, Vengan," she says quietly, almost disinterestedly, "it does not matter what our rank is. The commander of this vessel has complete authority over those aboard, followed by his second in command." A slight tilt of her head indicates Rasi as such. "Just as I would not go to a Marine base and browbeat a lesser officer and expect to get away with it." Her words aren't said as a challenge. They barely manifest as 'matter of fact'. When she's introduced to the Senator, she gives the man an appropriate half-bow that her people give to important dignitaries. "Senator," she greets formally, even as she turns over the datapad to Rasi. "Commander, Ghost squadron encountered no vessels trying to get past the quarantine zone and all ships we did encounter obeyed all requests to stand down until customs could review their manifests and cargoes. Thankfully, none of the ships carried any known contraband or weapons to spread the violence, and we directed the most critical inbound supplies to the places that most needed them. I fear there was far too little to truly address the situation," she adds rather sadly, her eyes shifting back to the Senator sorrowfully. "But we did what we could to expedite their traffic once they were deemed safe to do so." ------ Another outburst, as un-outburst-like as it would have been, is spared when Rasi sees signs that the confrontation are being called to an end. "Thank you Colonel, and I am told that there will be several more waves incoming from other parts of the Republic. Donations from individuals, planetary governments and the like that have been gathered for the crisis on Mon Calamari. One of the strike groups we have come with has been assigned to bring them convoy by convoy." With that said, Rasi turns back to Lemos, "Senator, as I said you will serve as a coordinator and inform us of where we are most needed. In effect this will give you a seat at the table as they say. While we will need to act if local forces are seriously overwhelmed or there is some other immense emergency, we will do so with your help and you will play a great part in shaping how any such mission would be conducted." ------ Lemos spends a few minutes flipping his datapad in between his fingers, much in the same way that he had been playing with Vengan's bars. A small part of his mind is busy debating the political implications of being in any kind of oversight position, but the remainder of him is actively paying attention to the conversation at hand. His memory of military protocol is sketchy at best, although that wasn't a conversation he would have gotten involved in anyway. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I'll do what I can," he gives a polite nod to Rasi. ------ Draelis acknowledges Lemos' directive with a nod. "Very well, Senator," he rasps. "As I said, whatever responsibility there is in this belongs to me." He draws his thumb along his cheek, adjusting the edge of the burn-injury gel. "You gentlemen will have to excuse me, then, if there's nothing else. I have men on the ground being shot at." He glances at Kyrin. "Colonel," he says, nodding in lieu of the salute rendered under other situations. "Always a pleasure." Taking the shift in conversation away from him as a dismissal, Draelis turns on his heel and moves out the door, taking his Marines in tow. Once out the door, the guard cries out, "Area, atten-TION! Officer on the deck!" and comes to a rigid parade salute. As Vengan walks down the hallway, each Marine guard comes to attention and salutes the battle-weary officer as he heads towards the shuttle and back to the fight. There will be a reckoning, to be certain, but for now it's apparant that the Corps- the fighting private, the backbone of the Marines- appreciates that there's at least one officer out there willing to lay it on the line in their defense.